Hello All!
I started my new position at the Valencia Branch of the Pima County Public Library on December 1, which I hope will explain my lack of posts.
As I mentioned in a previous post, my primary responsibility is Young Adult or Teen Services. I'm excited to be learning a new area of librarianship (I have previously served children and adults), and to be getting to know the teens that use the Valencia Library.
My workday includes a 2 hour commute at this time, so my reading time is next to nothing right now. Since starting work, I have read two YA novels, Edenville Owls by Robert B. Parker and Crossroads by Chris Grabenstein, both of which I enjoyed, and look forward to booktalking to teens. At home (I read the YA novels at lunch at work), I reread Charlotte Macleod's The Plain Old Man and just finished State of the Onion by Julie Hyzy. I recommend State of the Onion for those readers who like cozies with an edge. This week, for the holidays, I'm rereading Rest You Merry by Charlotte Macleod,which I read almost every year.
You may be wondering why I'm not listening to audiobooks on my long commute. I've never been a big audiobook listener, and those I've enjoyed in the past have been nonfiction, such as Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes and several by Bill Bryson, whose sarcastic humor I adore. I thought I'd start listening to YA books while commuting, so I started Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and while it wasn't bad, I didn't find that listening to it was my first choice when I got into the car. I'll try something else soon, or go back to Bill Bryson :) -- in the meantime, I have a Garrison Keillor Christmas CD for this week.
You may also be wondering when we are moving to Tucson, and the answer to that question is around the end of January. We have found a terrific apartment in Marana, which borders the north side of Tucson.
Next weekend, in between the holidays when my husband will be on a camping trip, I will spend a good deal of that time reading--two set aside for then are Death's Half Acre by Margaret Maron and It Happened One Knife by Jeffrey Cohen. On or after December 31, I will be posting my Favorites of 2008!
So, a new job and a new place--it's quite a way to end one year and start another! Life is very good!
Season's Readings to All!!!
Patti
Showing posts with label Tucson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tucson. Show all posts
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Gone West
Hello All!
I've lived in Arizona for a year, and recently I've read two wonderful books that have piqued my interest about the history of Arizona, especially from a woman's perspective.
Last spring, I read These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901, Arizona Territories by Nancy E. Turner. It was chosen to be the adult title for One Book/One Arizona. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it's on my "favorite reads" list for 2008, and I learned a lot about the growth of Tucson and Arizona during the late 1800s. I also learned how difficult it was to be a woman during those very rough times on what was still the frontier. Sarah survived a lot, learned a lot, and grew as a person during the book--not all fictional characters do.
The second book I just finished, Army Wives on the American Frontier: Living by the Bugles by Anne Bruner Eales. It reminded me of These Is My Words, especially when the wives the book mentioned were posted in Arizona. These women went west expecting to live lives similar to what they lead in the East, and those expectations were shattered by Indian attacks, severe weather, wild animals, and lack of decent housing and food. While there were strong-willed Army wives, and some who had interesting adventures, I feel that these women's lives were much more limited in their experiences, as they lived in more dangerous places (usually where there was a constant threat of Indian attack), could only purchase supplies on post, Army pay was very low, and basically lived in a closed society. Despite these restrictions, the Army wives persevered, and felt restricted when they returned East, for a new posting or to visit family.
In contrast, for me, Sarah, in These Is My Words, could move about more freely, despite the threat of Indians, could farm or ranch, purchase goods from a small selection of merchants in Tucson, and do other things to enhance her finances, such as make soap.
I really felt these two books complimented each other, and I look forward to reading more about the development and history of Arizona. There are two more titles about Sarah Prine by Nancy E. Turner, and I own a title, bought at the Grand Canyon, called Grand Canyon Women: Lives Shaped By Landscape by Betty Leavengood (2nd edition). I look forward to reading those books, and seeing what else I can learn.
Happy Reading!
Patti
I've lived in Arizona for a year, and recently I've read two wonderful books that have piqued my interest about the history of Arizona, especially from a woman's perspective.
Last spring, I read These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901, Arizona Territories by Nancy E. Turner. It was chosen to be the adult title for One Book/One Arizona. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it's on my "favorite reads" list for 2008, and I learned a lot about the growth of Tucson and Arizona during the late 1800s. I also learned how difficult it was to be a woman during those very rough times on what was still the frontier. Sarah survived a lot, learned a lot, and grew as a person during the book--not all fictional characters do.
The second book I just finished, Army Wives on the American Frontier: Living by the Bugles by Anne Bruner Eales. It reminded me of These Is My Words, especially when the wives the book mentioned were posted in Arizona. These women went west expecting to live lives similar to what they lead in the East, and those expectations were shattered by Indian attacks, severe weather, wild animals, and lack of decent housing and food. While there were strong-willed Army wives, and some who had interesting adventures, I feel that these women's lives were much more limited in their experiences, as they lived in more dangerous places (usually where there was a constant threat of Indian attack), could only purchase supplies on post, Army pay was very low, and basically lived in a closed society. Despite these restrictions, the Army wives persevered, and felt restricted when they returned East, for a new posting or to visit family.
In contrast, for me, Sarah, in These Is My Words, could move about more freely, despite the threat of Indians, could farm or ranch, purchase goods from a small selection of merchants in Tucson, and do other things to enhance her finances, such as make soap.
I really felt these two books complimented each other, and I look forward to reading more about the development and history of Arizona. There are two more titles about Sarah Prine by Nancy E. Turner, and I own a title, bought at the Grand Canyon, called Grand Canyon Women: Lives Shaped By Landscape by Betty Leavengood (2nd edition). I look forward to reading those books, and seeing what else I can learn.
Happy Reading!
Patti
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